Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Annapolis Boat Show- See the J/70, J/88, J/112E
(Annapolis, MD)- J/Boats is looking forward to seeing the Chesapeake/ Mid-Atlantic members of the J/Tribe at the Annapolis Sailboat Show from October 6th to 10th. The J/112E will be making its Annapolis show debut and she will be joining the J/88 family speedster and the world’s fastest growing sportsboat class- the International J/70.

A natural evolution of its J pedigree, the J/70’s 23 feet of sailing length with high aspect, all carbon rig and deep lifting keel, provides spirited performance and stability that feels like a much larger boat.

The J/88 family speedster has achieved extraordinary performances offshore since launch, including winning her class in the Chicago to Mackinac Race, the Queens Cup Race, the Waukegan Race, the Tri-State Race and the Santa Barbara to King Harbor Race. Learn more about this “pocket rocket” and why she is both fun to sail one-design racing, but an absolute scream to sail fast in offshore planing conditions in just the 8-10 kts wind! Learn more about the J/88 family speedster here.

What’s not to LOVE about the new J/112E Sport Cruiser?! The J/112E is a SAIL Magazine Best Boats Nominee for 2017. Learn more about her nomination here. Plus, she is also nominated for European Yacht of the Year 2017, the J/112E is the newest addition to the J/Boats “E” Series of versatile performance sailing yachts. A welcome 36 feet in length, she features a spacious two-cabin accommodation plan and a comfortable, ergonomic cockpit. The J/112E is as well suited for the annual family cruise as she is racing in the local club regatta or short-handing through rough weather. Please visit us in Annapolis to view this gorgeous cruising yacht for the entire family! For more Annapolis Boat Show informationJ/88 North Americans Preview
(Rye, NY)- American YC is hosting the inaugural J/88 North American Championship on Western Long Island Sound from September 30th to October 2nd. The forecast is daunting for the weekend, with breezes offering 20-30 kts from the northeast, making for a choppy, breezy start for the sailors hoping to sail fast on the Sound.

The previous weekend at the American YC Fall Series served as a good “practice regatta”. Showing good form all weekend was John Pearson’s RED SKY, winning the weekend by taking three bullets. Ken & Drew Hall’s NEVERMORE just squeaked out a second place over Doug McKeige’s JAZZ. Based on the weekend’s results, it was clear it was very tight racing overall. Past regatta winners like Iris Vogel’s DEVIATION, Doug Newhouses’ YONDER, Mike Bruno’s WINGS and Kevin Marks’ VELOCITY all posted top three finishes in their records in the five race series. After that warm-up, it will be interesting to see who pops onto the top of the leaderboard after three days of racing. Sailing photo credits- Sharon Green/ Ultimate Sailing. For more J/88 North American Championship sailing informationJ/Sailing News

The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide

It has been a gorgeous final week of sailing in September in a number of venues around the world. Currently taking place is the ALCATEL J/70 Worlds in San Francisco, CA, hosted by St Francis YC with the fleet being treated to epic San Francisco Bay conditions! Last weekend, the amazingly popular J/30 continues to enjoy great sailing with a resurgent fleet in the Chesapeake Bay area having nineteen boats partake in their J/30 North American Championship in Eastport, MD at Eastport YC.

Meanwhile, halfway around the world, the J/24 World Championship saw 42 boats sail a shifty, light airs regatta; an event hosted by the Wakayama Sailing Club in Wakayama, Japan.

Over in Europe, the fantastically fun SAILING Champions League finale was sailed off Porto Cervo, Sardinia, Italy on J/70s and hosted by the gorgeous YC Costa Smeralda for 28 of Europe’s “best sailing clubs” from 19 member countries. Meanwhile, two J/111s sailed the 700nm+ Palermo to Monaco race, hosted by YC Monaco and YC Palermo. The race ran from Palermo, Sicily, Italy to the finish line off Monte Carlo’s Hercules Harbor in Monaco. The J/111s sailed both ORR 2 and ORR Doublehanded classes.

Read on! The J/Community and Cruising section below has many entertaining stories and news about J/Sailors as well as cruising blogs about those who continue to enjoy the Caribbean and the South Pacific, staying warm while others are trying to stay warm up north. Check them out! More importantly, if you have more J/Regatta News, please email it or upload onto our J/Boats Facebook page Below are the summaries.

For additional J/Regatta and Event dates in your region, please refer to the on-line J/Sailing Calendar.The ALCATEL J/70 World Championship Update
(San Francisco, CA)- World Championship regattas always generate high-level competition, but when you stack 68 of the world’s most popular One Design boats on San Francisco Bay in a crisp, late-September breezes, you can bet your last shackle that the competition will be ferocious. Such was the case at the start of the 2016 Alcatel J/70 Worlds, hosted by St. Francis Yacht Club, as the fleet of top-shelf competitors experienced classic early fall conditions that tested racers’ big-fleet skills.

Day One
“You’re not going to win the regatta in the first race but you could lose it,” said Paul Cayard, a Volvo Ocean Race winner, who is serving as tactician aboard Carlo Alberini’s Calvi Network. “[At first] you’re just trying to get a couple of good races in. [Then], as the regatta proceeds…you may [eventually] have to start making a more aggressive game plan.”

While the morning started with a one-hour shoreside postponement to allow the sea breeze to fill in on the Berkeley Circle racecourse, everyone clearly had first blood in mind once the starting guns began sounding in 15-18 knots of wind, with puffs in the low 20s. There were two general recalls before the Race Committee added the motivation of a black flag: Cross the line early and disqualification is mandatory.

The bulk of the fleet concentrated on the right side of the line, a move that suited skipper Chris Kostanecki and his crew aboard Jennifer (USA 370) just fine, as Kostanecki split with the herd and aimed left, finding clear lanes. As boats to the right-hand side of the course battled for scraps, Jennifer enjoyed a fast ride to the windward mark, which they rounded first, creating a commanding lead that they carried across the finish.

“We nailed the start,” said Kostanecki, three minutes after crossing the line in this talent-rife class, which includes former J/70 World Champions Tim Healy (2014) and Julian Fernandez Neckelmann (2015), as well as former America’s Cup winners and Olympic champions. “The weather end of the line was favored, and we went left. It was our game plan and we [stuck with] it.”

Unfortunately, for Jennifer, the Race Committee deemed that Kostanecki and 15 other skippers were on course side before the start, resulting in 16 disqualifications. After the Race Committee sorted out black-flag rulings, Jud Smith’s Africa (USA 179) took first place, followed by Joel Ronning’s Catapult (USA 187) and Julian Fernandez Neckelmann’s Flojito y Cooperando (MEX 384).

The Race Committee— lead by Principal Race Officer Mark Foster— quickly began race two’s countdown, with the less-menacing U flag usurping race one’s black-flag guillotine. Jennifer’s start was clearly noticed by her competitors, and the left side of the line became expensive real estate as the clock wound down. A signal sounded, sails sheeted on hard, and 68 polished teams began battling 1.8 nautical miles of uphill sailing.

While Cayard wisely predicted that a new world champion wouldn’t be minted in the first race, this didn’t stop Calvi Network (ITA 456) from dropping the hammer on race two. Come the final downhill run, Calvi Network’s distinctive logoed spinnaker was easy to spot, thanks to the generous lead that she enjoyed over Claudia Rossi’s Petite Terrible (ITA 853) and Kostanecki’s Jennifer.

“We started on the right side of the course, and we controlled the right side,” said Cayard, minutes after exchanging a round of celebratory high-fives with his skipper and crew. “We kept the boat upright on the run, and we had some great steering.” While a bullet was fresh in mind, Cayard— a consummate professional— downplayed their result, given that the team scored 23rd in race one, putting them in 7th place overall. “It’s a long series,” said Cayard, his mind clearly focusing on the next four days.

After two races, Smith’s Africa is in 1st place with six points, followed by Ronning’s Catapult (who also carries six points) and Neckelmann’s Flojito y Cooperando, who finished their day with 15 points. This sets the stage for a massive battle between these three teams as their tacticians—Victor Diaz, John Kostecki and Bill Hardesty, respectively—seek the podium’s top step.

Day Two
San Francisco has a storied reputation as a world-class venue during the summer and early fall, and the second day did not disappoint.

A marine layer and 10 knots of westerly breeze greeted racers at the docks, but by the time the fleet arrived at the Berkeley Circle, pockets of blue sky and gathering airs created visually stunning optics. The Race Committee quickly started the first of the day’s three races, as they well understood that the morning’s flat waters would grow steep and sharp once the afternoon’s ebb tide arrived.

Pied Piper (USA 380) enjoyed a fantastic start, which they leveraged into a thin-but-comfortable lead at the first mark rounding, and Gannon Troutman, the team’s brilliant 13-year-old skipper, made sure to press this advantage hard as a scrum of boats battled for position in his wake. A flurry of crew movement produced a fine A-sail set, and Pied Piper launched off toward the leeward gate. Flash forward thirty minutes, and Troutman was still leading the hunt as Pied Piper whistled across the finish line to a round of crew celebrations.

“It was hard in the chop, but it got easier in the flatter water,” said an elated Gannon, seconds after beating many of the world’s best One Design sailors. A great start was an obvious key to Pied Piper’s success, but the team managed to stretch their lead considerably from the windward mark to the first gate by sailing low and fast through the building chop. When queried about his team’s three smartest strategic and tactical moves, Gannon wasted no words: “The start, a later gybe on the first downwind leg, and sailing conservative.”

Stronger airs and a gathering ebb tide conspired to kick up bigger seas, which would only intensify as the afternoon continued. The next countdown commenced, headsails unfurled, and 68 boats hit the line at pace with the race committee citing only two boats for being over early.

Most of the fleet opted for left side of the line and a starboard tack start, but within minutes defending world champion Julian Fernandez Neckelmann (MEX) and his Flojito Y Cooperando (MEX 384) teammates found their own lane and began making big gains on the fleet; by the top of the second windward leg they enjoyed a 1:15 lead over Claudia Rossi’s Petite Terrible (ITA 853), who rounded in second. Come the finish, Neckelmann and his tactician, San Diego-native Bill Hardesty, had stretched this lead by another 42 seconds to take a decisive win.

Consistency is key at any big-fleet regatta, and Neckelmann and company clearly demonstrated they have unlocked the Berkeley Circle’s secrets in moderate-to-heavy conditions by repeating their stunning performance on the day’s final race, commanding every mark rounding and delivering a finish that few eyes witnessed, as the bulk of the fleet was far astern, skirmishing for points and finishing slots.

“There’s still two days to go,” said Neckelmann, who looked happy but was clearly conscious of the remaining races—and other brilliant sailors—that still separate him from winning back-to-back J/70 World Championship titles.

While Flojito Y Cooperando exemplified textbook A-sail sets and gybes, plenty of other teams learned the Bay’s lessons the hard way as shrouds kissed the brine and more than one crew watched valuable sand bleed through the metaphoric hourglass as they fought to retrieve their water-logged kite. Still, broad smiles and happy faces could be seen aboard all boats, irrespective of their finishing positions.

“It was windy at the top mark, but we’re having a great time!” said Heather Gregg, skipper of MUSE (USA 95) and the 2014 J/70 Corinthian World Champion, moments after she and her all-Corinthian crew crossed the finishing line in the day’s final race. “It’s tough sailing in such a big fleet— you make a few mistakes and you’re shot out of the back. But we have a great team and we’re having fun!”

Day Three
Mother Nature had some surprises in store for the sailors on the third day of racing. For starters, it was split personality conditions that tested each boat's light air and heavy-air skills, as well as their patience as conditions played tricks on racers and the Race Committee alike. While the breeze varied, consistency proved its importance as several teams stayed fast, irrespective of the breeze and its meandering moods.

Winds of 5-10 knots and a flood tide awaited sailors as they began the downwind run to the Berkeley Circle, which is located some 7 nautical miles northeast of St. Francis Yacht Club. With a stronger left-hand component to the breeze than previous days, the Race Committee set the windward mark due east from Alcatraz Island, allowing boats to catch a fast, tide-powered ride to the leeward gate, a procession that was lead by Joel Ronning’s Catapult (USA 187), with hometown hero John Kostecki calling tactics. The breeze slowly built as the fleet swapped their kites for their headsails and Trey Sheehan’s Hooligan: Flat Stanley (USA 389) and Jack Franco’s 3 Ball JT (USA 3) hotly pursued Catapult.

Flash forward to the finishing line, and Catapult strutted to a clean win sailing wing-on-wing, followed by Hooligan: Flat Stanley and Claudia Rossi’s always-fast Petite Terrible (ITA 853). “It felt great to get in a fairly light-air race,” said Ronning, immediately ex post facto. “I’ve got a fabulous crew, and they knew what to do! I listened to [Kostecki], and we kept the boat going fast.”

While Ronning made his win sound simple, there was nothing straightforward about what unfurled next. The Race Committee started their countdowns for race two, the starting gun sounded, the boats launched off into gathering airs before popping their kites at the offset mark, and—with Jud Smith’s Africa (USA 179), Catapult, and Petite Terrible hammering for the leeward gate—the race was abandoned due to a course that was no longer square to the wind.

Principal Race Officer Mark Foster personally apologized to the fleet for this abandonment, but the racers themselves were to blame for the next two starts, which resulted in general recalls as the outgoing tide flushed boats over the line in advance of the clock. The Race Committee noted—via VHF channel 69—that 40-some boats were OCS in the second general-recall start, and that they would be conducting the next start under the dreaded U flag, meaning that anyone deemed OCS would be disqualified.

The message was received, and the next start was noticeably more conservative. The gun fired and the fleet pounded uphill in 18-22 knot airs and some of the afternoon ebb’s strongest waters, which churned up the Berkeley Circle’s infamous washboard.

Further astern, however, teams began flashing their keels at the sun. Ander Belausteguigoitia, who is sailing aboard Bala (MEX 680) explained heavy-air broach-recovery: “First you let go of all sails and controls, and if it’s not coming back, you have to pop the halyard about halfway, but you have to be careful it doesn’t go in to the water. The spinnaker is still in the air, and before it goes into the water you have to re-hoist it.” Get it right and the race can be salvaged; blow this delicate timing and your crew can expect a lengthy shrimping session.

While other boats were perfecting their recovery tactics, Africa took the bullet, followed by Sail Newport, Catapult and Petite Terrible. “The guys did a good job, they stepped it up and gave me a good one,” said an elated Smith, just after finishing. When queried about the team’s preference between the two vastly different sets of conditions experienced on Day Three, Smith smiled and admitted, “I like 6 knots, but the crew likes the heavy stuff!”

After seven races, Ms. Rossi’s Petite Terrible is topping the leaderboard, followed by Catapult and Africa. It’s probably the first time a woman skipper has led a fleet filled with multiple Olympic medallists, America’s Cup champions and multiple World, European and National Champions! Can she take the heat of the battle and persevere against some of the world’s most brilliant tacticians? Time will tell. Sailing photo credits- Chris Ray/ CrayVIP.com/ Sharon Green/ UltimateSailing.com. For more information about ALCATEL For more ALCATEL J/70 World Championship sailing informationDeutsche Touring YC Win SAILING Champions League
(Porto Cervo, Italy)- The Finale of the SAILING Champions League (23rd to 25th September) in Porto Cervo challenged the 32 European clubs from 13 nations with light winds and choppy waves. After 34 races in total, the reigning German League Champions of Deutscher Touring Yacht-Club won the regatta at Yacht Club Costa Smeralda in Sardinia and were awarded with the Robbe & Berking Trophy for the “Best Sailing Club”. Swiss clubs, the Regattaclub Bodensee and the Regattaclub Oberhofen, took second and third place respectively.

“It’s unbelievable what happened here. We were a bit lucky in these conditions but in the end, it worked for us. Only a few people believed that we could do it. We can’t wait to go crazy and celebrate,” said a happy and relieved helmsman of the Deutscher Touring Yacht-Club, Max Weiss.

The constant light wind conditions may have been advantageous for the winners from Southern Germany and the Swiss who claimed the final two spots on the podium. The clubs around the Alps are used to sailing on Lakes with less than gusting winds, so this unusual wind for Sardinia in September suited them perfectly and their lower crew weights added to the advantage. Helmsman of Regattaclub Bodensee, Julian Flessati: “We are surprised how well we managed sailing on ‘this ocean’ but we are very happy to be up here.”

The Yacht Club Costa Smeralda (YCCS) organized the SAILING Champions League Final for the second time and was once again pleased to welcome clubs from all over Europe. “This second edition of the SAILING Champions League in Porto Cervo has confirmed how popular the format is: fast, fun and technical races. The qualified teams are the best from each of their respective national leagues so the level of competition is naturally very high and we have noticed the standard is even higher than the first edition. I would like to thank all of the teams who travelled here from Scandinavia, from Russia and from all over Europe to race on our waters,” said Riccardo Bonadeo, Commodore of YCCS.

Technical partners for the event include AUDI MOTORSPORTS, SAP SAILING and QUANTUM SAILS. For updates on social media- #bestsailingclub #sclportocervo #yccs. SAILING Champions League sailing video summary.Sailing Photo credits- Francesco Nonnoi For more SAILING Champions League sailing informationGerman JJ-ONE Crowned J/24 World Champions!
(Wakayama, Japan)- Forty-four J/24 teams attending this year’s J/24 World Championship in Wakayama, Japan. With a tropical storm heading toward the area, it was the calm before the storm on day one of the J/24 World Championship. The J/24 teams representing Germany, Great Britain, Japan, Korea, Peru, Singapore, and the USA kicked off the Championship in winds of 4-6 knots over two races.

Daniel Frost’s JJOne of Germany mastered the conditions with a 1,2 to grab the early advantage in the five-day event. Demichi Kousuke’s Ichimokusan of Japan held a slim lead on second place, just one ahead of Peru’s Javier Arribas on Hawky. The day’s race winners were Frost in race one and Naoto Kitazume’s Maril in race two.

For day two- Tuesday- the slow-moving tropical storm dampened the day’s proceedings. The entire fleet was kept ashore with the AP flag flying all day as heavy rains and stormy winds blanketed the area.

Day three- Wednesday- dawned with great promise. Following yesterday’s tropical storm, winds calmed to 5-8 knots over today’s three races. Keiji Kondo’s Fox of Japan won the opening race, trailed by Demichi Kousuke’s Ichimokusan (JPN) and American Will Welles on Cougar. JJOne earned their second bullet of the regatta in the day’s middle battle, trailed by Fox and Mark Laura’s Baba Louie (USA). Einosuke Morita’s Wailea (JPN) won the final duel, with JJOne and Kato Fumiya’s Lull of Japan rounding out the top trio.

With five races on the books, the German team on JJOne had strengthened their lead over the highly competitive fleet. Daniel Frost’s crew had tallied just 6 net points, able to drop an 11 in race three and keep a skinny tally of 1,2,1,2. Kondo’s Fox moved up to second overall after a solid 1,2,4 for 15 net points. Kousuke’s Ichimokusa was in third with 22 pts.

Day Four- Thursday
Frost’s JJOne placed seventh on Thursday’s only race, but held a firm advantage heading into the final day. Two Japanese teams held second and third: Keiji Kondo’s Fox and Demichi Kousuke’s Ichimokusan, both with 25 points.

The day started with a postponement onshore for three hours, waiting for the wind to fill in. When it did at 6 knots, Tomomi Hatekeyama’s Gekko Diana won the lone race, trailed by Vladimir Borsthar’s Singapore and Kousuke’s Ichimokusan.

Day Five- Friday Finale
Frost’s German team of Timo Chorrosch, Felix Leupold, Jeronimo Landauer and Daniel Schwarze on JJOne placed 26th in race 7, putting the pressure on themselves going into the final race 8. With their previous 12-point advantage reduced to six, the team did not want to give up the lead they held since the very first race of the Championship. After multiple general recalls, the last meeting started under black flag with just minutes to spare before the time limit, in 8 knots of breeze. JJOne needed to cover the nearest competition, and they did, finishing 10th in the final contest to lock in the Championship. Two Japanese teams took Silver and Bronze: Demichi Kousuke’s Ichimokusan with 47 points and Keiji Kondo’s Fox with 48 points.

“Today was a tricky day. We went in with a 12-point lead, and the first race went really bad for us,” recapped Frost, who has been sailing with the JJOne team for five years. “The last race was very tricky as well. We found ourselves in front of our competitors, and we just sailed safe. We are incredibly happy. It’s a very special day!”

The started the day in fresh breeze but it fizzled near the end of race 7. Kato Fumiya’s Lull won both races, followed by Naoto Kitazume’s Maril and Stephan Mais’s Running Men in Friday’s first battle, and by Vladimir Borsthar’s Singapore and Will Welles Cougar in the last race of the event.

Behind the top three boats were Vladimir Borstnar from Singapore, Singapore in 4th place and Urara Fujii from Japan in 5th position. For more J/24 World Championship sailing informationZEPHYR 2.0 Dominates J/30 North Americans
(Eastport, MD)- From September 23rd to 25th, the most amazing fleet of nineteen J/30 teams assembled for a 30 love-fest at Eastport YC’s docks- it was the largest J/30 one-design event in at least a dozen years! Great fun was had by all and there were many examples of lovingly restored J/30s- a “concours d’elegance” would not have been out of the questions for this classic cruising/racing J/Boat design from 1980!

Winning in grand style was Scott Tonguis’ crew on ZEPHYR 2.0 with an astounding record of four 1sts in their scoreline to count just 14 pts total after 7 races- an average of 2nd for the regatta! Winning the first race, but never overcoming ZEPHYR’s pace was Doug Wallop’s CANNONBALL 2.0, posting 26 pts for the regatta. The balance of the top five and the fight to get on the podium was fierce for the next three boats. In the end, Bob Rutsch & Mike Costello’s BEPOP took the bronze with 40 pts. Just one point back was Doug & Amy Stryker’s TOTAL MAYHEM with 41 pts and fifth was taken by Steve Buzbee’s famously famous BLUE MEANIE with 42 pts. Top women skipper and owner Linda Wojcik sailed here GUNSMOKE to a very respectable 6th overall! For more J/30 North Americans sailing informationJ/111 MAJIC 2 Wins XII Palermo- Monte Carlo RaceJ/111 SL ENERGIES GROUPE Wins ORC Doublehanded Class!!
(Monte Carlo, Monaco)- YC Monaco hosts the biennial Palermo (Sicily), Italy to Monte Carlo Race that provides sailors in the Mediterranean the amazing challenge of sailing 700nm+ in a northwesterly direction past all the famous islands in the Med, like Sardinia and Olbia, for example. It is difficult to determine the best routing as it is never obvious based on the rapidly changing forecasts every day; basically driving most navigators absolutely stark raving mad!

Not surprisingly, winning the 4 to 5 day race on elapsed time was David RAMBLER 88, finishing Tuesday evening after their Saturday start. However, for the smaller boats it became a fast race. By Wednesday evening eighteen boats had finished, with 20 boats abandoning the race.

Among the finishers was the J/111 MAJIC 2, skippered by YC Monaco member Jean Pierre Seage. The MAJIC 2 crew was elated when they entered Port Hercules at 6:04 p.m. As a result, they finished in fifteenth place on elapsed time and won the race in class and overall on corrected time!

An equally outstanding performance took place in the ORC Doublehanded Class. The winner was the J/111 SL ENERGIES GROUPE skippered by Laurent Charmy.
J/CommunityWhat friends, alumni and crew of J/Boats are doing worldwide
-----------* The J/80s have challenging regatta in China! Check these photos out!! If anyone ever faced a challenge running a regatta it was the organisers of this year’s China Club Challenge Match in Xiamen China.

As you will have seen from a recent article just a matter of hours before the practice day Typhoon Meranti descended on the island city. Well descended is perhaps not the correct word, more like fell with a hammer blow. The strongest storm anywhere on earth this year, it devastated, not only the city with clean-up going on as I write and many areas running on generator power or candles but several of the boats due to be used in the regatta were left rig-less, with tattered sails and even one or two sunk at their pontoon berths.

A fantastic effort by the organizers managed to locate – and persuade owners to lend – a further 8 boats to enable the fleet of 30 to compete as one instead of being split into flights.

It wasn’t only the J/80’s that suffered, with umpires having to wait until marks were laid to take over the RIBs for the racing.

Day 1 saw typical, almost windless, post typhoon weather with Meranti having sucked virtually all the pressure difference out of the atmosphere and with the SI’s amended to show an earliest start of 1300 instead of the intended 1000 it was perhaps a dubious group of sailors and officials that made their way to Wu Yuan Bay. Add to the light winds mid-Autumn spring tides and racing outside in the maid channel was impossible but with an inspired RO decision to race in the bay itself at least the day didn’t end race- less with a race being banked on the less tidal waters just off the marina.

Day two was a little better for wind, but not much. However by cracking on when the opportunity arose 4 races were squeezed out of the light conditions. The lack of wind produced significant bunching at choke points on the course keeping the umpires whistles busy with both red and green& white variety.

Many of these were from the overly enthusiastic production of the prodder at the top mark, with some ‘sticking it out’ halfway between windward and offset mark with the gennaker still firmly down below. This seemed a habit that, even when boats just in front were penalized, some crews couldn’t get out of the habit!

Eventually the wind strengthened and settled in direction so the later races were less of a ‘wind-hunt’. And so, the pattern was maintained on Sunday. Eventually the RC’s PRO managed 7 races; enabling them to declare the series complete!

Like Club Cups of the past, the evening social scene was just as much fun with a highlight being a dinner sponsored by Microlab, the electronics manufacturer involving a Chinese dice game where the prizes were nice Bluetooth sound systems. On our table, many won prizes while freely admitting not having the slightest idea just how we were winning. (like a few sailors I know)

The top eight teams from this weekend’s efforts return in early November’ for the match race element of the Club Cup, once again a fully umpired event.

The final night’s prize-giving was excellently won with a gracious hostess, great food, free-beer and many new prize categories.

For the first time, there was a ladies prize – that’s certainly one way to attract women into our sport – along with separate podiums for pro-sailors and amateur sailors, a clever way to spread the spoils. The winners of the inaugural Ladies Prize was Luther Female Sailing Team with the amateur podium being 1st; Xiamen University Jetpon Team, 2nd; Yunnan Fuxian Lake Team and 3rd; Whitewave Sailing Center.

Over to the pros, in 3rd place was the Wind & Water Club; 2nd was Sea Blue Team with the podium topped off by J-Boats Racing Team from Xiamen. At least when the top eight return in 6 weeks time it won’t be into the aftermath of a weather system like that experienced last week. Thanks to “Shanghai Sailor” for the report from SailingAnarchy.com

* Warrior Sailing Program- sailing J/22s! The Warrior Sailing Program is dedicated to maritime education for wounded, ill and injured service members of the US military. The program facilitates opportunities, communicates experiences and builds partnerships between the military and marine communities while eliminating the barriers to entry and promoting continued engagement. Video published on Sep 22, 2016.Watch YouTube sailing video here- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEb49RIJvW0

J/Cruisers
J Cruisers continue their adventures around the world, below are a selection of most excellent "blogs" written by their prolific publishers. Some terribly amusing anecdotes and pearls of wisdom are contained in their blogs. Read some! You'll love it.

* The J/40 HERON REACH sailed by Virginia and Jerry is participating in the Blue Planet Odyssey project and have recently joined them in the Marquesas Islands in the Eastern Pacific. Learn more about their adventures and experiences here- http://heronreachodyssey.blogspot.com/* J/160 SALACIA has been sailing in Australia in the Whitsunday Islands. Guess who decided to throw themselves across their bow as they cruised comfortably to their next destination? A giant whale! Look at this amazing photo!

* Jim & Heather Wilson just completed a circumnavigation of our "blue planet Earth" in June 2013 on their J/42 CEOL MOR. Said Jim, "The odyssey of CEOL MOR is over, for now. We completed our circumnavigation on our J/42 when we crossed our outbound track in Britannia Bay, Mustique. We were, however, still 2,000 nautical miles from home. So we continued on through the Windwards, the Leewards, and then through the British Virgin Islands. After a farewell 'Painkiller' at the Soggy Dollar, and a last meal at Foxy’s, we made the 1,275 nautical mile passage to the Chesapeake and completed our port-to-port circumnavigation when we arrived in Annapolis on June 28, 2013. We had been away 1,334 days, completed 259 days of ocean passages, and sailed 30,349 nautical miles (34,925 statute miles). Read more about their adventures in their well-documented blog here: http://www.svceolmor.com/SVCeolMor/Welcome.html

* J/160 AVATAR headed for the Caribbean, again, for 2015/ 2016! We LOVE these updates from our cruising J sailors that continue to criss-cross the Seven Seas. This one comes from Alan Fougere, sailing his beloved J/160 AVATAR. Alan sent us an email update regards their various improvements and refit to the boat (see above). They will again be based at Proper Yachts in St John, US Virgin Islands.

* Bill & Judy Stellin were interviewed about cruising on their J/42 in the Wall St Journal called "Retiring on the Open Sea". The Wall St Journal asked Bill to reply to dozens of questions that flooded into the WSJ's Editor desks. Here's the update:

Retiring on the Sea: Answering Readers' QuestionsAdvice about selecting a boat, ocean crossings, itineraries and safety

The article in our WSJ Online December retirement report about eight years spent sailing the Mediterranean— "Retiring to the Open Sea"— prompted many questions and comments from readers. We asked William Stellin, who wrote the story, to answer some of the most common queries.

WSJ- "What kind and make of boat did you use? Looking back, would you have picked a different boat?"

Bill- "In 1995-96, J/Boats of Newport, RI, came out with a new cruiser/racer model, the J/42. We bought hull No. 6 of this popular 42-foot sailboat and named it JAYWALKER. This was our fourth boat since beginning sailing in 1975.

Although long-distance cruising wasn't what we had in mind when we purchased JAYWALKER, it soon became apparent it had the ability to carry us easily and safely anywhere we wanted to go. Because the boat is light, it sails well in light winds, which means very little motoring is necessary.

People often ask (and argue) about what boat is best for cruising. Any boat that is strong, safe, fast, comfortable and easily handled by two people should fit the bill. One thing for sure, fast is fun—and important when trying to avoid bad weather."

* The J/42 JARANA continues their epic voyage around the Pacific. Continue to read about Bill and Kathy Cuffel's big adventure cruising the South Pacific headed for New Zealand. Their blog is here: http://www.svjarana.blogspot.com/

* John and Mary Driver are sailing their J/130 SHAZAM for extended cruising in the Atlantic basin. At this time, John and Mary finished their double-handed crossing of the Atlantic, landing in Portugal on their J/130 Shazam after completion of their ARC Rally. Read the latest news at http://www.sailblogs.com/member/shazam/.

* Several J/160 owners are island hopping across the world's oceans, fulfilling life long dreams to cruise the Pacific islands, the Caribbean islands, the Indian Ocean and all points in between. Anyone for Cape Horn and penguins?? Read more about their adventures and escapades (like our J/109 GAIA, J/42s PAX and JAYWALKER and J/130 SHAZAM friends above).

- Bill and Susan Grun on the J/160 AVANTE are also sailing in the Pacific archipelago, read more about their great adventures on their blog (http://web.me.com/susangrun). Read about their latest adventures as they've gotten to New Zealand- "Avante Cruises the Pacific".

- Eric and Jenn on the J/160 MANDALAY also sailed the Pacific archipelago, read more on their blog at http://www.sailmandalay.com. Eric and Jenn are J/World alumni took MANDALAY up and down the West Coast (Mexico, CA), then to the South Pacific and New Zealand. MANDALAY is back in San Francisco now, and in the J/World fleet--she is available for skippered charters, private instruction, and corporate/executive groups.

Wednesday, September 21, 2016

Annapolis Boat Show- See the J/70, J/88, J/112E
(Annapolis, MD)- J/Boats is looking forward to seeing the Chesapeake/ Mid-Atlantic members of the J/Tribe at the Annapolis Sailboat Show from October 6th to 10th. The J/112E will be making its Annapolis show debut and she will be joining the J/88 family speedster and the world’s fastest growing sportsboat class- the International J/70.

The Famous J/70 Sportsboat- 1,100 Boats Strong!! The J/70 is J/Boats’ first slipway-launchable keelboat- designed to fulfill the growing need for an easy-to-own, high-performance one-design, that is exciting to sail, stable enough sailboat for the family, and built to last. A natural evolution of its J pedigree, the J/70’s 23 feet of sailing length with high aspect, all carbon rig and deep lifting keel, provides spirited performance and stability that feels like a much larger boat.

The J/88 family speedster has achieved extraordinary performances offshore since launch, including winning her class in the Chicago to Mackinac Race, the Queens Cup Race, the Waukegan Race, the Tri-State Race and the Santa Barbara to King Harbor Race. Learn more about this “pocket rocket” and why she is both fun to sail one-design racing, but an absolute scream to sail fast in offshore planing conditions in just the 8-10 kts wind!

What’s not to LOVE about the new J/112E Sport Cruiser?! Nominated for European Yacht of the Year 2017, the J/112E is the newest addition to the J/Boats “E” Series of versatile performance sailing yachts. A welcome 36 feet in length, she features a spacious two-cabin accommodation plan and a comfortable, ergonomic cockpit. The J/112E is as well suited for the annual family cruise as she is racing in the local club regatta or short-handing through rough weather. Please visit us in Annapolis to view this gorgeous cruising yacht for the entire family! For more Annapolis Boat Show informationThe ALCATEL J/70 Worlds Preview
(San Francisco, CA)- For starters, the expectations for the 2016 ALCATEL J/70 Worlds are truly phenomenal. In fact, they are off the seismic charts! The stage is simple- San Francisco Bay- the infamous Berkeley Circle. The setting could not be more spectacular. Surrounded by the magnificent city waterfront of San Francisco and its skyscrapers to the south, the engineering marvel known as the Golden Gate Bridge on its western approaches, the gorgeous hilly and fashionable northern suburbs of Sausalito/ Tiburon to the north, the “brainiacs” occupying the University of California- Berkeley campus on the eastern mountainsides, and, of course, the extraordinary vibe of the Silicon Valley entrepreneurs vibrating all around you, it is inescapable that you are living a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to sail amongst the world’s best sailors.

The talent? Mind-blowing, truly. World-class talent from across all spectrums of the sport of sailing. The short list of the fleet’s credentials? America’s Cup winners, Olympic Gold Medallists (and everything in between), World Champions, European Champions, North American Champions, and any number of National Champions (Australia, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, Chile, Peru, United Kingdom, Russia, Italy, Sweden, Norway, German, Spanish, French, Japanese, Cayman Islands, Hong Kong- China). There are more, we know, but we lost track!

For the seventy-nine teams entered, it’s like visiting the Holy Grail of Sailing and living to tell the tales to your friends and children (grand-children in some cases) after the experience. By default, it may be the world’s biggest reunion of so many top sailors; perhaps one could describe it as the “Woodstock” of sailing since so many rock-stars are participating!

From September 27 to October 1, sailors can expect some of the finest annual conditions this world-class venue reliably delivers. San Francisco Bay enjoys a storied reputation for breeze-on summer sailing. Late September, however, usually offers Indian Summer conditions, featuring warm days with slightly moderated airs. Along with breeze, the Bay is notorious for its currents and tides, which have challenged world-class professional sailors racing everything from powerful keelboats to foiling catamarans. Fortunately, the Berkeley Circle racecourse is located on shallow, tide-protected waters, out of the slippery influence of the swiftest-flowing current that rake the Bay’s deeper waters. Maybe. Maybe not. As some have discovered over the “course” of time! It is an “ebb-tide” event, which produces some extraordinary anomalies on the Bay! Some will figure it out, some will not.

“Expectations are high for this event,” said Lynn Lynch, St. Francis Yacht Club’s Race Director. “Model sailing conditions, world-class talent, top-level race management and unbelievable socials will all come together to result in a World Championship worthy of the fastest-growing fleet in the world of one-design sailing. The anticipation is palpable, and we are expecting people to come ready for some serious competition.”

A glance at the 2016 ALCATEL J/70 Worlds entry list reveals star-studded boats from 15 nations, including former J/70 World Champions, Tim Healy (HELLY HANSEN) and Julian Fernandez Neckelmann (FLOJITO Y COOPERANDO); former J/70 North American Champions Jud Smith (AFRICA) and Joe Bardenheier/ Heather Gregg (MUSE); as well as former J/70 European Champions Carlo Alberini (CALVI NETWORK) and Claudia Rossi (PETITE TERRIBLE). Additionally, this impressive list also includes world-class tacticians such as local San Franciscan John Kostecki, the only sailor to have ever won an Olympic medal, the J/24 Worlds, the America’s Cup and the Volvo Ocean Race! John is sailing with Joel Ronning’s incredibly talented team on CATAPULT that includes crew like Patrick Wilson from Charleston, SC. Joining him in on the course are two former US Sailing Rolex Yachtsmen of the Year winners- Bill Hardesty (2011) on board Julian Fernandez’s crew on FLOJITO Y COOPERANDO and Paul Cayard (1998) on Carlo Alberini’s CALVI NETWORK; the former having won two Etchells 22 World Championships and the later the Star World Championship and the Volvo Ocean Race! In other words, these teams have tremendous depth!

“The class’ level is going up very fast, with more talented sailors joining every year,” said 2015 J/70 World Champion and 2016 J/70 North American Champion, Julian Fernandez Neckelmann; a former J/24 Mexican National Champion from Valle de Bravo (west of Mexico City). While this surge in numbers and skill levels could overwhelm some classes and hosting clubs, there’s a reason this hugely popular class chose its hosting partner. “The St. Francis Yacht Club and the J/70 class will certainly provide excellent race management,” continued Neckelmann. “San Francisco is one of my favorite racing scenarios in the world… It would have been hard to choose a better place! Plus, you cannot beat Mel’s Drive-In for breakfast in the morning- a San Francisco classic!”

If that group described doesn't perform, there are any number of “mercenaries” that could displace them quite quickly given an even chance across a broad spectrum of weather conditions. For example, past US Team Racing and Coronado 15 Champion Jacko Franco on 3BALL JT from Kemah, TX; J/24 North American Champion Pat Toole on 3 BIG DOGS from Santa Barbara, CA; Michele Galli’s B2 from Italy and Moscow, Russia (Francesco D’Angelis as tactician- J/24 Worlds and America’s Cup winner); Per Von Appen’s BLACK SAILS from Chile (National Champion); Mauricio Santa Cruz’s BRUSCHETTA from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (4x J/24 World Champion); Matthieu Salomon’s CHARIOT PLUS- VANNES UTILITAIRES from Elven, France (French J/80 Champion); the Nevin/Chris Snow team on COOL STORY BRO (skipper is USA Collegiate Sailor of the Year); Makoto Uematsu’s ESMERALDA (yes, same guy who started TP52 offshore class from Tokyo, Japan with a number of TP52’s by the same name); Bob Hughes’ HEARTBREAKER from Ada, MI (Farr 40 Great Lakes Champion and Chicago-Mac winner); Martin Dent’s JELVIS VII from London, England (J/111 World & Cowes Week Champion); Jose Maria “Pichu” Torcida’s NOTICIAS from Spain (2x J/80 World Champion and Europeans winner); Peter Duncan’s RELATIVE OBSCURITY from New York (Etchells 22 Champion); Peter Vessella’s RUNNING WILD from San Francisco (Star World Champion); Jim Cunningham’s LIFTED (Etchells 22 Midwinters & National Champion); Brian Keane’s famously fast team on SAVASANA from Boston (2x J/105 Midwinters and J/80 World Champion that includes USA 49er Olympian Stu McNay as tactician); Bruno Pasquinelli’s STAMPEDE from Ft Worth Boat Club in Texas; Chris Raab’s SUGOI from Newport Beach, CA (Lido 14 & Snipe National Champion and USA National Team Race and Master’s Team Race Champion); Simon Ling’s TEAM RAF SPITFIRE from Poole, England (2015 J/70 Worlds Corinthian Champion and JP Morgan Round Island Race winner); and that is just to name a few in the talent pool!

With such an extraordinarily diverse group of sailors from across the planet, it can be safely said that everyone will have a fun, competitive time! No question, the StFYC bar afterwards will be full of “sea stories” about how they navigated a 79 boat starting line and went the right (wrong) direction! Time will tell the tale soon enough! Watch this space next week, starting on Tuesday! For more information about ALCATEL For more ALCATEL J/70 World Championship sailing informationSAILING Champions League Preview!
(Porto Cervo, Italy)- Europe´s top sailing clubs will compete in the finale of the SAILING Champions League in Porto Cervo, Sardinia from 23rd to 25th September (prior to the J/70 World Championships for some of the team members!). The aim is to win the sought-after silver trophy by Robbe & Berking and earn the title of Europe´s "Best Sailing Club".

Thirty-two teams representing some of Europe's most respected yacht clubs will meet at the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda this weekend for the final showdown. Clubs from twelve nations, including Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy and Sweden will gather in Sardinia to attempt to take the title from defending champions the Royal Norwegian Yacht Club. The teams competing in the grand final in Sardinia are champions that have qualified over the past year via their national leagues as well as the best clubs from the preliminary round held in St. Petersburg, Russia (Act I) in August!

Top sailors from various Olympic classes will feature amongst the crews on board the J/70 one-designs provided by the YCCS in this international competition for the European title. Short, fast fleet races are scheduled to take place from the 23rd to 25th of September on the renowned regatta course off Porto Cervo.

The 2015 European final was also held on the waters of the Costa Smeralda and the winners, Royal Norwegian Yacht Club, will certainly be one of the teams to beat. The team representing hosts the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda will also be one to watch as will Russia's Yacht Club Navigator Team, their crews placed second and third, respectively, last year.

The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide

If there was one dominant theme that characterized sailing around the world last week, it might be “J/70s are sailing everywhere”! With 1,100+ boats already on the water in over four continents, that is not surprising. Simultaneously, J/70 teams were sailing in Germany, Denmark, San Francisco, Detroit and Long Island Sound last weekend! Some were sailing in league events, some in regattas- all told well over 500 sailors!

In Europe, the action was hot and heavy in the national sailing league events using matched-fleets of J/70s in Germany and Denmark. The Danish Sailing League had its fourth event and finale in Skovshoved, Denmark for eighteen sailing clubs. Then, over in Germany, the Deutsche Segel-Bundesliga was sailed in Kiel with eighteen sailing clubs participating. Also taking place were the J/22 Dutch Nationals in Hoorn, The Netherlands. Then, the J/80 UK Nationals were completed in Lymington, England with host Royal Lymington YC.

In the America’s events were taking place on all points of the compass. For starters, the J/105s in Canada held their National Championship on Lake Ontario, hosted by the Royal Canadian YC in Toronto. Down south of them in Western Long Island Sound, the Storm Trysail Club and Riverside YC in Riverside, CT hosted the YRA Long Island Sound Championships, featuring one-design J/70s plus a PHRF fleet with J/88s, J/111s, J/109s, J/105s, J/35, J/80 and J/92. Out in the Midwest, the first-ever Premiere Sailing League USA event took place in Detroit, MI, hosted by Grosse Pointe YC for ten teams. Out West in San Francisco, CA, the St Francis YC hosted their famous Rolex Big Boat Series for one-design fleets of J/70s (their Pre-Worlds), J/105s, J/120s and for ORR/PHRF handicap fleets that included J/125s, J/111s, and J/88s.

Finally, taking place all this week was the J/24 World Championship in Wakayama, Japan. There is an update below with an exciting development- a German team is leading the fleet of 48 boats!

Read on! The J/Community and Cruising section below has many entertaining stories and news about J/Sailors as well as cruising blogs about those who continue to enjoy the Caribbean and the South Pacific, staying warm while others are trying to stay warm up north. Check them out! More importantly, if you have more J/Regatta News, please email it or upload onto our J/Boats Facebook page Below are the summaries.

For additional J/Regatta and Event dates in your region, please refer to the on-line J/Sailing Calendar.Epic Sailing @ Rolex Big Boat Series
(San Francisco, CA)- The record-setting 52nd edition of the Rolex Big Boat Series got underway last Thursday under leaden skies and cool temperatures. But with a westerly wind of 10 to 20 knots blowing, the fleet of 127 boats banged out at least two races on three racing circles.

In classic Big Boat Series fashion, the race committees sent the 11 classes on long courses around San Francisco Bay with the second race finishing off the St. Francis Yacht Club. The formula for success was hard to fathom because the tide shifted from flood to ebb between races, meaning that the side of the course that played in the first race didn’t hold true in the second.

With 26 entrants, the J/105 Class was the second-largest in the regatta and it was frequently in close quarters. The first windward mark rounding saw Ryan Simmons’ (Sausalito, Calif.) BLACKHAWK lead and then quickly throw in a jibe to port. With 20 other boats coming in from all angles, shouts of “Starboard!” were heard frequently. In the end, BLACKHAWK scored two firsts in the tightly contested class. Rick Goebel’s (San Diego, Calif.) SANITY was second with two 2nds and Tom Kennelly’s (San Rafael, Calif.) WONDER was in third with 8 points on finishes of 5-3.

Other leaders with double bullets included David Halliwill’s (New York, N.Y.) PEREGRINE in the J/120 Class.

In the J/70 Class, the largest class in the fleet with 36 entrants, Joel Ronning’s (Excelsior, Minn.) CATAPULT and Julian Fernandez Neckelmann’s (Valle de Bravo, Mexico) FLOJITO Y COOPERANDO gained slight separation on the pack with some stellar racing. CATAPULT led with 4 points on a scoreline of 1-1-2 and was 1 point ahead of FLOJITO, which posted a 2-2-1 scoreline. Third place was held by Bob Hughes’ (Ada, Mich.) HEARTBREAKER, which had 10 points on a 4-3-3 scoreline.

“Those two are going to be tough to beat,” said Chris Snow (San Francisco, Calif.) racing on fifth-placed COOL STORY BRO. “Flojito is the reigning world champion. Catapult has John Kostecki as tactician and they’ve been practicing a lot. It’s all about the build-up to the Worlds next week.”

The J/70s sailed three races all on the Berkeley Circle, where the class will hold its World Championship beginning Sept. 24. Kostecki, a past world champion in many classes, said they had good starts and good boatspeed, which allowed them to get to the head of the pack. “When you’re in the front of the pack in a big fleet, life is easy,” said Kostecki.

Kostecki, who’s been sailing on San Francisco Bay all his life, said that the Berkeley Circle racecourse levels the playing field. “Compared to some of the other courses on San Francisco Bay, the Berkeley Circle doesn’t lend itself to local knowledge. We sailed three races in flood tide, slack tide and ebb tide, and there was no set game plan. Sometimes the right worked and sometimes the left worked. It was a tricky day.”

Second Day- Classic Windy 25-32 kts!
After Thursday’s opening day in grey conditions, Friday saw the marine layer over San Francisco Bay burn off early and that enabled the westerly breeze to increase into the high 20s, with gusts to 32 kts, by the end of racing. With an ebb tide running in the afternoon, a short chop kicked up that made the downwind leg to the finish off the St. Francis Yacht Club a wild ride with broaches aplenty.

All class leaders, however, continued the consistent form that propelled them to the top of their class yesterday. After winning both of yesterday’s races, Halliwill’s J/120 PEREGRINE finished 2nd in the first race followed by a 1st in the second race and led the J/120 Class by 3 points over Barry Lewis’s (Atherton, Calif.) CHANCE, which had a 3-2-1-2 scoreline.

The J/70 Class continued to be a battle between FLOJITO and CATAPULT. Led by world champion tacticians Bill Hardesty and John Kostecki, respectively, the two crews were tied with 9 points at the end of the day, each with three 1sts and three 2nds. FLOJITO, however, won the final race and therefore held the tiebreak advantage.

These two crews have connections that run deeper than San Francisco Bay, and the thread is Hardesty. Hardesty sailed with CATAPULT for two years, including the inaugural J/70 Worlds three years ago. He also was tactician for Neckelmann last year when he won the J/70 Worlds. Additionally, Hardesty raced Lasers against Neckelmann 20 years ago, when both were training for the Olympics.

Hardesty said that whoever gets to the right side of the racecourse on the Berkeley Circle and rounds the windward mark in the lead is able to extend. “I think there’s a shaft of wind coming off of Angel Island that makes the right favorable,” he said.

Besides watching the wind, Hardesty has been keeping a close eye on Kostecki. “He’s sailed here all his life. He knows this place like no one else,” said Hardesty. “So if I see he’s tacking one way or the other, we’re going to tack soon after.”

FLOJITO won the day’s final race in such fashion. “We lined up to start at the boat end but had a general recall,” said Hardesty. “We saw that Kostecki was starting at the pin end. So, in the second start we were at the pin end. We had a long beat all the way across the Bay to the city front. Because we started at the pin, we were able to nose into the ebb tide first and then just got swept out the Bay. Good thing we had a general recall!”

In the J/105 Class, Goebel’s SANITY overtook the lead from Simmons’s BLACKHAWK. Simmons placed 12th in the first race and 3rd in the second while Goebel finished 3-5. Although Goebel is the only class leader to not win a race, he leads with 12 pts to Simmons’s 17 pts.

Goebel is another veteran racer at the Rolex Big Boat Series, but hasn’t competed here since 2011. In fact, his history on San Francisco Bay stretches back to the mid-1980s when he was a crewman for the Canada II syndicate for the America’s Cup and they were in town training against Tom Blackaller’s USA syndicate.

Goebel trailered his boat to San Francisco from San Diego because they’re ultimately headed to the East Coast for the J/105 North Americans later next month and needed practice. As he noted, eight of the 26 entrants are past class winners.

“It’s a ton of fun to travel to San Francisco and race in the big breeze,” said Goebel, who’s originally from Edmonton, Canada. “It’s a different world here from San Diego, with the waves and chop. You always have to be conscious of the current. There are some areas that are hard to handle under the Golden Gate Bridge. It’s like a washing machine.”

Third day- more epic winds!
The marine layer hovering over San Francisco Bay took a while to burn off early Saturday, causing a slight delay to racing. Once it cleared, a strong seabreeze gusting upwards of 30 knots filled for Day 3.

The conditions have been typical for this time of year that has allowed RBBS veterans to rise to the tops of their classes. While experience is paying off for the classes racing off the city front, the J/70 class is racing on the Berkeley Circle in the eastern Bay. There, local knowledge is less of a factor because the current flows more uniformly.

In one of the more compelling battles of the regatta, FLOJITO laid down the hammer on the day, winning all three races to open an 8-point lead over CATAPULT. The two boats had traded 1st and 2nd through the first two days of racing, but CATAPULT tripped up in the first race, placing 6th, followed by a 2-3.

Holding 3rd place in the J/70s is Chris Kostanecki’s (Ross, Calif.) JENNIFER, which has 63 points and trails FLOJITO by 51 points. Still, Kostanecki is happy with his crew’s performance. “Practice is paying off,” said Kostanecki, who grew up in Darien, Conn., sailing on Long Island Sound. “We’re getting off the line without drama. The first two minutes of the race are critical. It’s so important to get poked out and we’re holding our own.”

Kostanecki was buoyed today because they were trading tacks with FLOJITO. “We almost got them one race,” he said. “We came to the windward mark with them but they got inside us and just sailed away. They’re so quick changing modes from upwind to downwind. The good thing is we learned what they’re doing downwind: rocking the boat to windward and getting the angle to the waves.”

In the J/120s, Halliwell’s PEREGRINE continued to put forth a solid performance. PEREGRINE had accumulated a scoreline of four 1sts and two 2nds for the low score of 8 points, good for a 3-point lead over Lewis’s J/120 CHANCE.

PEREGRINE helmsman Mike O’Callaghan is another veteran of the RBBS, having raced at least 20 times. He grew up sailing on the Bay and has raced with some of his crew since he was a teenager. “We’re putting the boat in the right place on the racecourse, getting off the start line well and holding our position.”

CHANCE won the first race, but PEREGRINE bounced back for the win in the second race. “Chance is no slouch. They got on us in that race and kept driving us back. It’s fun stuff. In another race, we passed them on a reach going about 1.5 knots faster, just sailed right over the top of them. We hit 16 knots on that leg! That’s a lot for this boat!”

The lead also changed hands in the J/105 Class, which is the closest class in the regatta. Philip Laby’s (Oakland, Calif.) GODOT started the day in fifth place but leapt to first after posting a 1-2. GODOT had 29 points, good for a 2-point lead over Simmons’s BLACKHAWK. Bruce Stone’s (San Francisco, Calif.) ARBITRAGE was in third with 32 points and Goebel’s SANITY was in fourth with 33 points.

Fourth day- Pretty, Gentle Breeze for the Finale
The regatta drew to a close on Sunday in splendid late-summer sailing conditions. After a two hour delay waiting for the breeze to fill, a seabreeze of 15 to 18 knots arrived and brought with it decidedly warmer temperatures. For the first time in four days, crews shed their foul weather gear and fleeces as they took to the racecourse.

Tim Fuller’s (Murrieta, Calif.) J/125 RESOLUTE won the City of San Francisco Trophy, one of the two golden spades used for the ground-breaking ceremony of the Golden Gate Bridge in 1933, for winning ORR B. Peter Wagner’s (Atherton, Calif.) J/111 TOPZY TURVY finished second and also was the top-scoring J/111 in the fleet. Completing a sweep of the podium by J/crews was Viggo Torbensen’s J/125 TIMESHAVER from Dana Point, CA. Taking 5th was Dick Swanson’s J/111 BAD DOG.

The Atlantic Perpetual Trophy, a ship’s bell from the schooner Atlantic, which established a transatlantic record in 1905 that stood for 92 years, was presented to Philip Laby’s (Oakland, Calif.) Godot, winner of the J/105 Class. In a seesaw battle that came down to the seventh and final race, Godot scored a 1-point victory over Simmons’s BLACKHAWK. Never recovering from a scoring penalty in race 3 and a broken sprit pole while winning a race by a 1/4 mile was Goebel’s SANITY, having to settle for 3rd place. Rounding out the top five was Stone and Breault’s ARBITRAGE in 4th and 5th was Jeff Litfin’s MOJO.

The Commodore’s Cup Perpetual Trophy was awarded to the winner of the largest one-design class in the regatta, the J/70 Class that had 36 entrants. The top-finishing J/70 was Neckelmann’s FLOJITO. The win did not come easy as they posted their worst finish of the regatta in the first race of the day, an 11th, while Ronning’s CATAPULT took a 4th. Winning the first windward-leeward 1.6nm leg race was Jud Smith’s AFRICA. With one point separating the two, CATAPULT had to put one boat between them and FLOJITO to win the regatta in the final race home. The last race was started near red bell #2 on the east side of the shipping channel and course #37 was chosen by PRO Jeff Johnson (San Diego YC), a long 4.6nm beat to a drop mark next to Blackaller Buoy in the shadows of the southern tower of Golden Gate Bridge. After a port rounding, it was downwind to the finish line at StFYC. Both leaders started at the port end of the line, hoping to be the first to drop their bows into the building ebb along the city front, south of Alcatraz Island. Though CATAPULT got into the 3 kt ebb first, FLOJITO was close enough, and fast enough to win the first cross. Thereafter, FLOJITO kept CATAPULT covered all the way to the mark to win the race. Meanwhile, Heather Gregg & Joe Bardenheier’s MUSE team sailed fast, played the shifts off the shore to pass CATAPULT on the final leg home to take 2nd in the race. As a result, FLOJITO won, with CATAPULT second. Taking third was Kostanecki’s JENNIFER, fourth was Smith’s AFRICA and fifth was Brian Keane’s SAVASANA.

Winning Corinthians Division was Gregg/ Bardenheier’s MUSE (and finished 10th overall), followed by the San Francisco team of 1FA skippered by Scott Sellers in second and the Newport Beach team of SUGOI (Chris Raab & Dale Williams) in third. Fourth in Corinthians was Pat Toole’s Santa Barbara team on 3 BIG DOGS and fifth was Jim Cunningham’s LIFTED.

Halliwell’s Peregrine won the J/120 Class with the low score of 9 points, accumulated on five 1sts and two 2nds. Lewis’s CHANCE placed second with 13 points, followed by Steve Madeira’s MR MAGOO in third. Taking 4th place was Timo Bruck’s TWIST and 5th position was Tom Grennan’s KOOKABURRA.

Sailing PHRF Sportboat division was a trio of J/88s taking on a Soto 30, M32s and Farr36s. In the end, it was Marc McMorris’ M-SQUARED taking third as top J/88, while Gary Panariello’s COURAGEOUS and Jim Hopp’s WHITE SHADOW finished 6th and 7th, respectively. Sailing photo credits- Rolex/ Daniel Forster- danielforster.com/ Leslie Richter- Rockskipper.com/ Sharon Green/ UltimateSailingFacebook Rolex Big Boat Series sailing video summary For more Rolex Big Boat Series sailing informationFirst Premiere Sailing League Great Success!
(Detroit, MI)– Showcasing the stadium sailing concept that the Premiere Sailing League USA is working to bring to the U.S.A., the league held its first-ever event at Detroit’s Grosse Pointe Yacht Club (GPYC) on September 10 with ten teams of four sailors racing J/70s. In just over four hours the 10 boats rotated through the 18-race exhibition event: each team sailed a total of nine races and watched the action for a total of nine while mingling with spectators.

“This was a good first step in changing how we view sailing,” said Wally Cross, Sailing Director of GPYC. “The format is proof that you can watch our sport and make it entertaining. This was a test, and based on the success of this event we plan to have another major stadium sailing event next summer at GPYC for the Premiere Sailing League USA.”

Cross feels the format is a new direction in sailing – and entertainment. “This is new, fast paced and entertaining,” explained Cross. “In my opinion, our sport takes too much time to do and takes time away from family. With the Premiere Sailing League’s concept, you can sail from noon to 4:00, watch for a couple of hours and have your family come down to be a part of the action. The total time of the regatta is equal to one round of golf. Someone can come and watch the action and talk to the competitors while viewing the races.”

GPYC is the first of over a dozen planned venues with which Premiere Sailing League USA will partner to stage sailing in a stadium-style setting; each regatta will be held close to shore and will utilize the latest social media technologies to engage both live and virtual audiences. For more detailed information on the Premiere Sailing League, please contact via email or visit http://www.premieresailingleague.com.
Danish J/70 Sailing League Act IV Finale
(Skovshoved, Denmark)- It was an epic final battle for the Danish J/70 Sailing League title in Skovshoved, Denmark. The duel between Frederikshavn and Hellerup sailing clubs went down to the wire, with Frederikshavn winning in the end, much to the delight of their delirious fans lining the waterfront on Skovshoved Harbour.

Frederikshavn Sejlklub sailed in Skovshoved with the solid team of Kris Houman (skipper), Rasmus Melsen, Søren Steen and Rasmus Damsgaard. Hellerup Sailing Club put up a fantastic crew that included Trine Abrahamsen (skipper), Kristian Kvid Sorensen, Ida Hartvig and Nicolas Brandt Hansen. Not only was Hellerup’s crew a highly experienced league team, but Trine Abrahamsen's big match race experience played a significant role in their epic duels with Frederikshavn. However, Trine and crew somehow could not get themselves going and firing on all cylinders, missing the cut for the FINAL SIX finale after 14 races and placing just 8th out of the 18 teams, scuttling their chances for the overall league win.

Meanwhile, Frederikshavn Sejklub sailed “lights out”, decimating the fleet with fabulous starts, brilliant tactics and eye-opening boat-handling skills. They not only won the first round, but cleaned up in the FINAL SIX to win the regatta by one point over KDY and also win the overall Danish Sailing League championship by 7 pts! Third for the regatta was Faaborg Sejlklub, which also enabled them to finish 5th for the overall series. Fourth in Skovshoved was Hadsund Sejlklub, which brought them up to 6th overall in the series.

Behind FSK and HS for the overall series was KDY in third overall, followed by Kerteminde in fourth position. Watch the Danish Sailing League highlights here on Facebook video For more Danish J/70 Sailing League informationExciting German J/70 Sailing League Act IV
(Kiel, Germany)- The fight for the Deutsche Segel-Bundesliga championship continued this past weekend in the amazingly cool sailing city of Kiel. Hot duels, tight distances and amazing sailing conditions made for fast & furious sailing all weekend long in the “City of Sails”.

The first division fought in Kiel head-to-head for fifteen races with Deutscher Touring YC winning again over a star-studded cast of seventeen sailing clubs from across Germany. Their team was led by Julian Stückl, Patrick Follmann, Jonas Vogt and Luis Tarabochia. As usual, DTYC sailed strong and confident with consistent performances and a cool head.

"We are very happy that it worked for us again in Kiel! We have a big strong team from which we can draw great sailors and it was nice to win in the end," said Jonas Vogt from DTYC. In fact, after posting a 2nd in Starnberg, 1st in Kontanz, 6th in Travemunde, and 1st in Berlin, DTYC is now far ahead in the standings and hope to close out yet another DSBL overall title in Hamburg in a few weeks time.

Taking second in Kiel was Norddeutscher Regatta Verein, boosting their chances for a top five finish overall in Hamburg; they currently sit in 6th overall, just 7 pts out of 5th. Third in Kiel was Bayerischer YC, moving them into 5th overall and closing the gap to just 4 pts behind Chiemsee YC in the overall series.

At this stage, behind DTYC overall is Verein Seglerhaus am Wannsee in 2nd with 22 pts. Third is Lindauer Segler-Club with 25 pts, who did themselves no favors for a shot at the title by bombing their performance in Kiel- a 14th place! Fourth overall is Chiemsee YC and 5th is Bayerischer YC. No question, the finale in Hamburg will keep 2nd to 5th place teams pre-occupied with one another as any bad slip will send them down the proverbial mine shaft quickly! Watch the Deutsche Segel-Bundesliga Kiel sailing highlights here on YouTube For more Deutsche Segel-Bundesliga sailing informationMANDATE Man-handles J/105 Canadians
(Toronto, ONT)- The J/105 Canadian Championships took place at the Royal Canadian YC from September 15th to 18th. A total of seven races were sailed over the three-day event for the eighteen-boat fleet. As usual, the RCYC staff ashore and their RCYC PRO did an amazing job hosting the J/105 sailors.

Picking up where he left off in the 2015 J/105 North Americas, Terry McLaughlin and his friend Rod Wilmer sailed MANDATE to a crushing win over their fellow Canadians. Basically, they never let off on the gas pedal, blazing around the track in fine form, taking four 1sts and two 2nds on their way to a stunningly huge victory- 27 pts to be exact!!

The battle for second, however, was epic and that was where all the action took place while MANDATE sailed away over the horizon. Past J/105 North American Champion Jim Rathbun on HEY JUDE had an amazing duel all regatta with Ian Farquharson’s SONIC BOOM. Both teams sailed roller-coaster scorelines going into the last day, trading places the entire time. Not until the seventh and final race did Rathbun’s HEY JUDE crew get it altogether to take a bullet and the silver for the regatta. SONIC BOOM placed 4th and, consequently, earned the bronze. Rounding out the top five was Peter Hall’s JAMAICA ME CRAZY in 4th place and Felicity Rodness’ ROUNDING ERROR in 5th position.

With this “training” event behind them, many of these crews are packing up and headed south to the 2016 J/105 North American Championship being sailed in mid-October at Larchmont YC in Larchmont, New York. For more J/105 Canadian Championship sailing informationJ/24 World Championship Update
(Wakayama, Japan)- It has been a slow start for the forty-four J/24 teams attending this year’s J/24 World Championship in Wakayama, Japan. With a tropical storm heading toward the area, it was the calm before the storm on day one of the J/24 World Championship. The J/24 teams representing Germany, Great Britain, Japan, Korea, Peru, Singapore, and the USA kicked off the Championship in winds of 4-6 knots over two races.

Daniel Frost’s JJOne of Germany mastered the conditions with a 1,2 to grab the early advantage in the five-day event. Demichi Kousuke’s Ichimokusan of Japan held a slim lead on second place, just one ahead of Peru’s Javier Arribas on Hawky. The day’s race winners were Frost in race one and Naoto Kitazume’s Maril in race two.

For day two- Tuesday- the slow-moving tropical storm dampened the day’s proceedings. The entire fleet was kept ashore with the AP flag flying all day as heavy rains and stormy winds blanketed the area.

Day three- Wednesday- dawned with great promise. Following yesterday’s tropical storm, winds calmed to 5-8 knots over today’s three races. Keiji Kondo’s Fox of Japan won the opening race, trailed by Demichi Kousuke’s Ichimokusan (JPN) and American Will Welles on Cougar. JJOne earned their second bullet of the regatta in the day’s middle battle, trailed by Fox and Mark Laura’s Baba Louie (USA). Einosuke Morita’s Wailea (JPN) won the final duel, with JJOne and Kato Fumiya’s Lull of Japan rounding out the top trio.

With five races now on the books, the German team on JJOne had strengthened their lead over the highly competitive fleet. Daniel Frost’s crew now tallies just 6 net points, able to drop an 11 in race three and keep a skinny tally of 1,2,1,2. Kondo’s Fox moved up to second overall after a solid 1,2,4 for 15 net points. Kousuke’s Ichimokusa rests in third with 22 pts.

Two more days of racing to go and there is no question that JJOne’s fans in Germany are cheering wildly for them to be the first German World Champions ever in the J/24 class! For more J/24 World Championship sailing informationA Fine Weekend for J/80 UK Nationals
(Lymington, England)- Hosted jointly by the enthusiastic Lymington J/80 fleet, the Royal Lymington Yacht Club and supported by the Lymington Town Sailing Club, this year’s J/80 UK Nationals could be summed up by misquoting the most famous Briton ever- “Never was so much packed into so little (time) by so few (organizers)!”

Having dispensed with the analogies, it is correct to highlight the fact that in just three days RLYC PRO Roger Wilson and his team ran 9 near-perfect races, in winds from 0-30kt, tides from 0-4kt, using two very different race areas set 7nm apart.

Meanwhile, on shore, competitors and guests enjoyed a genuinely “crammed” social programme with well-organized and supported functions every evening. To further help things along, organizers and event sponsors sorted out three days of sunshine to accompany the complete range of sailing conditions.

Day One
The excitable 25-boat fleet headed into Christchurch Bay for three testing races, which passed successfully as the wind ranged from 1-16kt knot and shifted around much of the compass. “Nimble but successful” would best describe the race committee’s efforts to run fair courses as the playing field tipped back and forth. At the end of the day’s three races, local boats were in the ascendant, Oly Dunford’s Purple Haze steered by Simon Shaw topping the table from Chris and Hannah Neve’s No Regrets and ‘young’ Ray Mitchell and a team of real youngsters on Checkmate.
Mitchell’s youthful team would go on to have an exceptional regatta, only interrupted when their boat was badly damaged by a port-tack rival in the strong breezes of day 2… God bless redress.

Day Two
The Weather Godz brought the breeze, and lots of it, with four fast races in the Western Solent. By now the two favorites had found their feet, multiple J/80 champion Kevin Sproul’s team scoring 2,1,1,1 and regular J/80 performer John Powell on Betty ending the day with 1,2,3,2.

As well as Checkmate’s earlier crash, there was some off-piste action for Fiducial’s crew Al Newton – builder of Iain Percy’s gold medal winning Star boats – who achieved some nice, graceful air when flying overboard during a rather too speedy gybe. While ‘Flipper’s’ crewmates struggled to dowse the kite and turn around, Chris Kirkman’s crew on Jane eventually picked up the (moderately) grateful casualty.

Day Three
The final day was a race officer’s nightmare, but that evening Roger Wilson and his race team were still smiling having completed two good races, now back in Christchurch Bay, almost pulling off one more before the morning’s zephyrs faded completely. Wilson’s patience was rewarded two hours later when the sea breeze finally filled in, with a race win for No Regrets and (more) grey hair for Kevin Sproul, shut out at the start but fighting back to 8th to take the overall win by 4pt from John Powell and Betty.

With Sproul taking his 5th UK Nationals J/80 title and Powell a worthy runner-up, the family Neve– top local boat – slotted in to 3rd overall.

The Corinthian prize duly went to Ray Mitchell in 5th- - - plus giddy merriment for the scorers who spotted some rather too illustrious T-shirts among the amateur entries!

Kevin Sproul’s polished victory aside, a big prize would also have been appropriate for those behind such an excellent event, Jim White and James Harrison, plus the Royal Lymington’s now legendary administrator Kirsty: just hours before the ‘gala’ dinner the club’s two chefs walked out– for good!! Rather than do what most normal folk would have done, order up 150 Chinese takeaways, Kirsty and a tiny team, with nicely chaotic local support, cooked and served 100 covers exactly as planned. Who wants a grumpy chef anyway!?!

Last but not least, as well as convincing superstar umpire John Doerr to interrupt his global schedule for a weekend of local entertainment, White and Harrison had arm-twisted enough sponsorship for this regatta to run an America’s Cup. So on their behalf, thank you to those who dug deep- - Skyscanner, Amis Productions, Nick Cox Chandlers with Helly Hansen, Seahorse Magazine, Berthon, Lymington Yacht Charters, North Sails, Rum Jungle, Marston Brewery, Go Ape adventures and Garmin!

The after party was “a blinder”, so to speak! Thanks in large part to all the wonderful sponsors! Checkout this extraordinarily slick Amis Productions J/80 UK sailing video summary on YouTube.
J/Domination @ YRA LIS Championships
(Riverside, CT)- The Storm Trysail Club and Riverside YC hosted this year’s 2016 Long Island Championships for PHRF handicap classes and the J/70 class on Western Long Island Sound. Providing Riverside YC with additional help and support for the event were American YC and Indian Harbor YC. Much to the delight of all the competitors, the weekend weather provided uncharacteristically excellent breeze and lots of racing on Long Island Sound! The conditions were very much to the liking for J/Teams that won 3 of 4 PHRF handicap classes!

With a dozen J/70’s showing up ready to do battle for LIS bragging rights, everyone expected the racing to be fun and tactically challenging until the final race on Sunday. As it turns out, the winners were determined by a tie-breaker! After six races, Madelyn Ploch’s women’s team (SUGAR DADDY) and Kerry Klingler (MENACE) each had 9 pts with the tie-break going in favor of Klingler on countback based on 1st places! Taking third was Scott & Alex Furnary’s ANY COLOUR with 16 pts net. The balance of the top five was Scott Bursor’s SLINKY in 4th position and Dan Goldberg’s BAZINGA in 5th place.

In the PHRF handicap world, it was just about a clean sweep of all four classes for J/crews! In PHRF I, MaryEllen Tortorello’s J/111 PARTNERSHIP took 4th place, losing a tie-breaker for 3rd overall; a fantastic first outing for her as skipper on the famously fast black boat!

Similarly, PHRF III class had Christian Uecker’s J/92 HOUND DOG take overall honors for the weekend. Next J/crew was Randy Bourne’s J/105 STRANGE BREW. Finally, in PHRF IV class, Jason Viseltear’s J/80 UPSETTER lived up to her name, winning class with nearly straight bullets! For more Long Island Sound Championship sailing informationFRAPORITA Conquers J/22 Dutch Nationals
(Hoorn, The Netherlands)- Held in conjunction with the famous “Zuiderzeeweek”, the Dutch J/22 Class held their annual “Open J/22 Dutch Nationals” on the beautiful Zuider Zee!

The class enjoyed a great turnout of thirteen boats, a big improvement over last year’s event! Teams participated from The Netherlands and Germany. After an eight race series with one discard (7 races counting), it was Jean-Michel Lautier’s FRAPORITA that showed her transom to the fleet for most of the races, compiling an impressive four 1sts and three 2nds to win the crown of 2016 Dutch National Champion!

Despite the hailstorm of bullets generated by FRAPORITA, Gideon Mastenbroek’s JUT EN JUL took the balance of 1sts and 2nds to take the silver on the podium. Third was the top woman Dutch sailor, Hylke Kooistra’s familiar boat with the bright red jib- BIG ROLL/ TU DELFT BROACH BEAUFORT with 20 pts net. Rounding out the top five were Daan Grundman’s BIG ROLL/ TU DELFT BROACH BARENTZ in fourth with 26 pts and taking 5th place was Tim de Weerdt’s RSZJ with 31 pts. For more Open J/22 Dutch Nationals sailing information

PART 1 – RAMBLER’s, let’s get Ramblin’
As we found out in 2014 & 2015, the J/88 is a perfect boat for Lake Michigan Distance Racing and the 2016 Bi-State Race was no different. Andy Graff on EXILE, Ben Wilson on RAMBLER, & Boyd Jarrell on SLOT MACHINE were looking forward to some close racing on the 50 mile sprint from Chicago across the lake to St. Joe. That is exactly what the 88’s had – close racing. STARBOARD!!

On the evening of September 2, the night of racing was shaping up nicely. Winds 10-15kts, low sea, and good chilly weather. With St. Joe approximately 75 degrees off Chicago and the direction ENE 70-80 degrees, it was time to think tactics. When would the wind go ESE per the forecast? When will we get to use our Code 0? Do we point to sail less miles or do we foot off for speed and head way right of rhumb? Decisions..decisions..

As the 15 boats in PHRF Section 4 began, we started to see who wanted what, pin or boat. Although a distance race, RAMBLER has found that getting off in front is important with the 88’s. Right before the start, RAMBLER finds SLOT MACHINE and EXILE, EXILE looking to take off on the pin end with under 2 minutes to the start. STARBOARD! STARBOARD! RAMBLER had a port starboard issue with another PHRF 4 boat and after licking her wounds on the starboard rear aft quarter of the boat – RAMBLER decided to keep racing. As stated by Ben Wilson, “RAMBLERs, let’s get Ramblin’”. With that, RAMBLER re-focused and it was time to go chase Andy Graff & the crew of EXILE around the lake. The 88’s were off to St. Joe!

Through the night EXILE and RAMBLER traded the lead, heading right of rhumb and getting to the Michigan/Indiana shore as fast as they could. With average speeds of 7-8 knots, things seem to be moving nicely upwind. RAMBLER and EXILE were the right most boats of the entire fleet for the night and it seem to pay. RAMBLER was the first Section 4 boat to call in 1 mile from the finish, feeling good about themselves for about 5 seconds..EXILE calls in one mile from the finish! It was going to be an exciting finish and RAMBLER was fired up. WHERE THE HELL IS EXILE!?!

RAMBLER was able to pull out a victory after EXILE hit a hole a half a mile from the finish. Luck was on RAMBLERs side that night as they won section 4 honors and took 5th Overall out of 110 boats.

PART 2 – EXILE gets pay back
To say that racing was close on the way back from St. Joe would be an understatement. As Andy Graff said post-race, “We traded leads 6 or 8 times and I don’t think we were ever more than 600 feet away from each other the whole day”. Over 50 miles of racing, that’s pretty close considering the distance sailed. Boyd Jarrell from the J/88 SLOT MACHINE was right in the mix for the day too.

The Sunday morning for the second leg of the Bi-State brought some really nice weather. Sunny, low sea, ESE breeze from 10-15 knots brought welcomed thoughts of sending it home under spinnaker – and that’s just what the 88’s did. SENT IT!

Boat handling proved to be the deciding factor in this race. From the EXILE hourglass at the start, to RAMBLER shrimping a kite because they didn’t rig the second tack line for a peel, to sailing too deep…every mistake gave the opponent boat lengths and brought lead changes. With RAMBLER, EXILE, and SLOT MACHINE clipping along downwind with boat speeds of 8-10kts, life was good. At mile 25 on the way home, the little things proved to be important as EXILE was able to sail course with speed while RAMBLER sailed hotter but couldn’t find the speed to get back up to the finish. Boyd Jarrell and SLOT MACHINE brought their “A” game, never far off the leaders for the duration of the day.

In the end, EXILE proved to be too much for RAMBLER & SLOT MACHINE on the Sunday race going home – taking line Honors in Section 4 and, based on corrected times, may have taken the day on the fleet Overall. What’s also impressive on the day is that the J/88’s took the podium in Section 4 finishing 1-2-3 on the day. THE 88’s PERFECT END TO A GREAT SAILING WEEKEND!!”

* The J/105 JELLY BABY JP Morgan Round Island Experience- as told by owner William Newton! Enjoy this fun report on how Newton and team had a most amazing adventure going around the famous Isle of Wight 60nm “America’s Cup” course on their J/105. Courtesy of J/105 Class News!

“The day before the Round the Island Race, the forecast was predicting 25-30 knots from the west going southwest, but at least it wasn’t going to rain, and our start was at a respectable hour so we wouldn’t have to leave Lymington until 0700 hrs. We had a crew of seven, and fortunately a big boys crew, which would hopefully keep the boat upright! Breakfast en route was bacon rolls and brown sauce...it wasn’t going to be a day for Weight Watchers breakfast.

We thought long and hard about the start. With the wind in the west, did we start at the island side of the line where initially the current would be favorable? Or the outer end with less tacks and the advantage of the line bias? We went for the outer end. I am still not convinced it was correct. Combined with no clear air and positioned forty meters behind the line (that’s what the machine said!) at the start, this was not one of our better starts.

Beating down the Solent was uneventful except for witnessing one port and starboard collision. At the Needles, I am reminded it is my decision as to whether we pass inside the wreck. We did, but the majority of boats seemed to pass outside, other than another Lymington boat (J/109 Jumbuck) that was alongside us. Unfortunately, they were dismasted later in the race. Having passed inside the wreck, we had clear air and waited for an instance as there were no spinnakers and it appeared a shy reach that would have meant the code O. However, the wind settled and freed, so we set the fractional spinnaker and off we went with the speed at between 14-16 knots with the occasional burst of 18 knots.

Approaching St. Catherine’s, the crew noticed a drone overhead. Did the paparazzi think we were famous? A few days later, we found the clip on You Tube. Nice to see that we were travelling faster than the boats around us!

In spite of it being a shy reach, we made St. Catherine’s without having to drop the spinnaker.

At St. Catherine’s, the overfalls created a nasty sea state. At one moment coming off a large wave, we recorded a speed of over 20 knots! We quickly made the decision not to try and gybe, so jib out, dropped the spinnaker, gybed, and re-hoisted, having sorted out a mess of a spinnaker with somehow two halyards wound around it!

Once sorted, up went the spinnaker again, and off we went to Bembridge Ledge buoy. At this stage, we were in company with our main J/105 and club rivals— Andy Roberts and Bill Edgerley’s Jin Tonic. The adrenalin kicked in, and we managed to sneak ahead. Afterward, they claimed they had delayed their spinnaker hoist following their gybe to have lunch!

From the Needles to St. Catherine’s, we had not been passed by any boats, but now the wind angle was more favorable for a spinnaker (thought this would change). We considered changing to a masthead spinnaker, however checking the true wind speed at 29 knots quickly thought otherwise, and continued with our fractional spinnaker. The sea was much smoother on the way to Bembridge, so having to gybe four times before reaching the buoy was not a problem.

At Bembridge, down came the spinnaker, and a reach in the direction of the post near No Mans Land fort. The wind had not abated in spite of being in the lee of the island, so we put in a reef. From here, it was a beat along Ryde Sands to the finish, only having to tack three times. At this stage, an absence of boats around us was unusual, but a pleasant change from previous years of continuous tacking in traffic.

The erratic wind off Norris, as always, questioned as to why we didn’t sail further out into the Solent and the adverse tide. We didn’t—just kept trimming and made the finish line without tacking, and continued to sail on to Lymington. We texted in our declaration, and, as always, we were glad to receive confirmation. There is always a concern that we might have been OCS or entered a prohibited area. At that moment, out came the drinks and cake.

During the dreadful return journey to Lymington (all upwind against chop), we received the odd text saying we had done well. Nobody seemed that bothered. We realized it had been a fast race, completing the 55nm in 6 hours 50 minutes. The most important thing was we had enjoyed ourselves, and other than losing two hats and a few bruises, all was well!

Arriving in Lymington, we retired to the yacht club to finish the cake and have another beer, and confirm that we had won class 2B. With our fellow club members on Jin Tonic (J/105) and Boomerang (Adams 10), who won the second place team prizes for the Royal Lymington Yacht Club, a time for champagne!

It is interesting to note in our class 2B (46 boats) that the first four boats were J/105s. And of all the J/Boats competing under IRC, the second and third boats were J/105s (the winner was a J/111 by two minutes). Not a bad performance for a 25-year-old design!!

J/Cruisers
J Cruisers continue their adventures around the world, below are a selection of most excellent "blogs" written by their prolific publishers. Some terribly amusing anecdotes and pearls of wisdom are contained in their blogs. Read some! You'll love it.

* The J/40 HERON REACH sailed by Virginia and Jerry is participating in the Blue Planet Odyssey project and have recently joined them in the Marquesas Islands in the Eastern Pacific. Learn more about their adventures and experiences here- http://heronreachodyssey.blogspot.com/* J/160 SALACIA has been sailing in Australia in the Whitsunday Islands. Guess who decided to throw themselves across their bow as they cruised comfortably to their next destination? A giant whale! Look at this amazing photo!

* Jim & Heather Wilson just completed a circumnavigation of our "blue planet Earth" in June 2013 on their J/42 CEOL MOR. Said Jim, "The odyssey of CEOL MOR is over, for now. We completed our circumnavigation on our J/42 when we crossed our outbound track in Britannia Bay, Mustique. We were, however, still 2,000 nautical miles from home. So we continued on through the Windwards, the Leewards, and then through the British Virgin Islands. After a farewell 'Painkiller' at the Soggy Dollar, and a last meal at Foxy’s, we made the 1,275 nautical mile passage to the Chesapeake and completed our port-to-port circumnavigation when we arrived in Annapolis on June 28, 2013. We had been away 1,334 days, completed 259 days of ocean passages, and sailed 30,349 nautical miles (34,925 statute miles). Read more about their adventures in their well-documented blog here: http://www.svceolmor.com/SVCeolMor/Welcome.html

* J/160 AVATAR headed for the Caribbean, again, for 2015/ 2016! We LOVE these updates from our cruising J sailors that continue to criss-cross the Seven Seas. This one comes from Alan Fougere, sailing his beloved J/160 AVATAR. Alan sent us an email update regards their various improvements and refit to the boat (see above). They will again be based at Proper Yachts in St John, US Virgin Islands.

* Bill & Judy Stellin were interviewed about cruising on their J/42 in the Wall St Journal called "Retiring on the Open Sea". The Wall St Journal asked Bill to reply to dozens of questions that flooded into the WSJ's Editor desks. Here's the update:

Retiring on the Sea: Answering Readers' QuestionsAdvice about selecting a boat, ocean crossings, itineraries and safety

The article in our WSJ Online December retirement report about eight years spent sailing the Mediterranean— "Retiring to the Open Sea"— prompted many questions and comments from readers. We asked William Stellin, who wrote the story, to answer some of the most common queries.

WSJ- "What kind and make of boat did you use? Looking back, would you have picked a different boat?"

Bill- "In 1995-96, J/Boats of Newport, RI, came out with a new cruiser/racer model, the J/42. We bought hull No. 6 of this popular 42-foot sailboat and named it JAYWALKER. This was our fourth boat since beginning sailing in 1975.

Although long-distance cruising wasn't what we had in mind when we purchased JAYWALKER, it soon became apparent it had the ability to carry us easily and safely anywhere we wanted to go. Because the boat is light, it sails well in light winds, which means very little motoring is necessary.

People often ask (and argue) about what boat is best for cruising. Any boat that is strong, safe, fast, comfortable and easily handled by two people should fit the bill. One thing for sure, fast is fun—and important when trying to avoid bad weather."

* The J/42 JARANA continues their epic voyage around the Pacific. Continue to read about Bill and Kathy Cuffel's big adventure cruising the South Pacific headed for New Zealand. Their blog is here: http://www.svjarana.blogspot.com/

* John and Mary Driver are sailing their J/130 SHAZAM for extended cruising in the Atlantic basin. At this time, John and Mary finished their double-handed crossing of the Atlantic, landing in Portugal on their J/130 Shazam after completion of their ARC Rally. Read the latest news at http://www.sailblogs.com/member/shazam/.

* Several J/160 owners are island hopping across the world's oceans, fulfilling life long dreams to cruise the Pacific islands, the Caribbean islands, the Indian Ocean and all points in between. Anyone for Cape Horn and penguins?? Read more about their adventures and escapades (like our J/109 GAIA, J/42s PAX and JAYWALKER and J/130 SHAZAM friends above).

- Bill and Susan Grun on the J/160 AVANTE are also sailing in the Pacific archipelago, read more about their great adventures on their blog (http://web.me.com/susangrun). Read about their latest adventures as they've gotten to New Zealand- "Avante Cruises the Pacific".

- Eric and Jenn on the J/160 MANDALAY also sailed the Pacific archipelago, read more on their blog at http://www.sailmandalay.com. Eric and Jenn are J/World alumni took MANDALAY up and down the West Coast (Mexico, CA), then to the South Pacific and New Zealand. MANDALAY is back in San Francisco now, and in the J/World fleet--she is available for skippered charters, private instruction, and corporate/executive groups.